


stuck with u

by etheralhaz



Series: ADORE YOU -- oneshots [1]
Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Arranged Marriage, Cheating Louis Tomlinson, Depressed Harry, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, F/M, Implied/Referenced Cheating, M/M, Married Life, Mpreg, Mpreg Harry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-13
Updated: 2021-03-13
Packaged: 2021-03-20 19:40:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,367
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30009918
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/etheralhaz/pseuds/etheralhaz
Summary: in which louis and harry are forced to marry. drama ensues
Relationships: Harry Styles/Louis Tomlinson, Louis Tomlinson/Original Male Character(s)
Series: ADORE YOU -- oneshots [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2207595
Comments: 1
Kudos: 31





	stuck with u

although he doesn't want to, harry remembers the wedding.

he remembers his parents piling up money in a jar labeled "harry's wedding" that he didn't even want. he remembers being forced to go buy a tux that matched his groom's, although he had no prior clue to what he looked like other than a crappy screenshot his mother had gotten off of tinder. he remembers getting walked down the aisle and seeing the man's face and having his heart beat faster than ever before. the older, scruffier-looking man, with stubble coating the lower half of his face and his hair gelled up into a slick quiff, had taken his hands in his own and given him a polite smile. he remembers that smile. it sickeningly resembled something along the lines of i-don't-want-to-be-here or put-me-out-of-my-misery.

the kiss was the worst part. no vows were leading up to it other than the words hello and i do. their families had stood up in an encore and cheered at them when they were pronounced louis and harry tomlinson and had closed the giant space between them. it was awful. there was no chemistry and harry wasn't sure which way he was going in to kiss him so they ended up bumping noses.

it's not like harry wants to be married. not to a stranger, at least. his parents forced him into it because they wanted him out of the house and louis tomlinson just happened to own quite a bit of money and was also being forced to marry. their grandparents weren't entirely content with the idea of two men marrying each other but they came to the wedding nonetheless.

their honeymoon wasn't what harry expected. he wanted them to at least have a bit of conversation, get to know each other as husband and husband, figure out how they were going to move harry's things into their new house, and maybe drink a few glasses of wine and relax on the beach.

obviously, that's not what happened. in fact, as soon as their toes had met the sand, louis had abandoned their beach chairs and scurried off to go flirt with a shirtless man standing next to the smoothie shack.

it's been increasingly difficult over the years to live with louis tomlinson. harry cleans up all of his messes, cooks dinner for them -- even when he decides to pack a duffel bag when he gets home from work so he can stay the night at another love interest's home -- and devotes all of his time lying to his family about how great life is being married. married is an understatement. housewife is a much better way to describe it.

the two tolerate each other for five years. harry has definitely warmed up to the man, as much as he hates to admit it. in fact, sometimes he thinks he might be in love.

he knows it's ridiculous -- louis probably only spends about ten minutes a day talking to him and he's been cheating on him since the day after they wed. but sometimes when they go to see family, louis will snake his arms around him from behind or ruffle his curls when he gets up to use the restroom, and harry's belly will ache. he'll stay up all night pondering his feelings while the man in question lays with his back toward him, texting someone else.

louis hates him and he knows it. he has no idea why he has feelings for a man who doesn't care. he supposes that's how it always works. he's always chasing after things he'll never receive.

they're in the living room when louis' phone rings on the coffee table and startles the two of them. louis sets down the newspaper and takes his glasses off the bridge of his nose so he can answer it. it's his mum. harry tries to scoot closer so he can speak to her as well but he's immediately swatted away by louis' unoccupied hand.

"hi, love, is harry with you?" jay asks when her son picks up.

louis looks over at the curly-haired boy and sighs, motioning for him to come closer. he does immediately, still keeping his distance but being near the phone. "yes, mum. he's right here," he nods. his voice sounds so polite when he speaks to other people. harry wishes he could hear him talk like this all the time.

"sorry to bother you two, but i spoke with anne and we just wanted to ask you if you've ever considered having children," she explains. harry and louis immediately whip their heads up to look at each other and they hear jay laugh on the other end. "if not, that's fine. we're just getting old, waiting for some grandchildren."

harry wouldn't mind carrying their baby if he knew louis wasn't out having other people do the same thing. he just shrugs his shoulders, allowing his husband to reply. "uh... haven't given that any thought, no," he admits, because why would he?

she just says that she knew he was going to say that, and then she bids them goodbye and hangs up. they immediately go back to their own activities without a word.

that conversation isn't spoken of for months. louis' probably forgotten about it already. harry hasn't. it's another thing he stays up late thinking about. that would mean they would have to have intercourse. that thought always leads to harry locking himself in the bathroom until he finally rids himself of the problem in his pants.

one night, louis comes home in a taxi, and he sees harry sitting on the couch, watching a movie. harry glances over at him once and then goes back to watching the telly. it's routine. they don't even look at each other when they speak.

the oldest man in the room slips his shoes off and then half-stumbles over to the couch, tugging the blanket off of his husband with a chuckle.

harry glares at him, furrowing his brows and reaching to grab his blanket back. louis only backs up further to distance them and continues to laugh because harry can't get his blanket back. "how much did you drink?" the curly-haired boy asks. he just assumes he was at a bar getting plastered.

"nothin'," louis responds easily, grinning. harry shakes his head in disbelief and finally manages to get his blanket back, retreating to the couch. before he can get there, louis wraps his arms around him from behind and nuzzles his cheek against his shoulder blades. "hang on a second," he murmurs.

"okay...?" harry replies, looking down at their hands that seem to tangle together against his abdomen.

the shorter man sighs loudly, tightening his hold on the boy. "can i ask you somethin'?" he asks, voice just above a whisper. he feels harry nod and he closes his eyes. "do you have feelings for me?"

the other boy's heart stops in his chest. he couldn't possibly tell him the truth. who cares if he's drunk, he'd probably still remember it in the morning and then he'd find another way to ignore him for the rest of his life. he just stands, frozen, thinking of what to say. "i mean, you're my husband," he finally shrugs.

"you know what i mean, harry."

he just turns around to face him with a heavy sigh, shrugging again exasperatedly. "what do you think?" he asks. depending on what his answer is, he's going to have to change the way he's been acting around him.

there's no answer. louis stares at him for a whole minute before he holds his face in his hands and leans up to kiss him. it's sloppy and unexpected but it's somehow better than their first kiss (you know, five years ago at their wedding).

harry pulls away first. his hands are still at his sides and he only moves them when louis links their fingers together between them. "you're drunk."

"you're drunk," louis argues.

the taller boy scoffs, but he has an odd grin on his face. "to speak my truth, i had a glass of wine earlier," he admits in a whisper.

louis' mouth drops open in faux shock. when harry starts to giggle, his lips curl up into a grin and he takes his face back into his hands, kissing him again.

eventually, they fall back onto the couch, legs interlocked and hands in each other's hair.

harry wakes up the next morning, naked and alone. he briefly remembers feeling louis get up and retreat to the bedroom to get dressed a few hours earlier. he gets up as well, with a blanket wrapped around his waist, and peers out the living room window to see louis standing in the driveway. there's an unfamiliar car that pulls up next to harry's, and he watches as louis gets in and kisses the driver on the lips.

he rushes to the bathroom to turn on the shower, where he sits on the floor, sobbing into his knees. he scrubs away at his scalp to try and rid the feeling of louis' hands there, as well as his hands and his tear-stained cheeks.

-

it's only a month and a half later when they're sitting at louis' parents' house, eating dinner. harry's staring down at his half-empty plate with his fork in his mouth when a drop of red drips onto the white porcelain. he drops his fork and holds his hand underneath his nose, using his napkin to stop his incoming nosebleed.

louis' family is staring at him and he doesn't know what to do. louis isn't even paying attention because him and his brother, ernest, are having a tickle match on the other side of the table.

"are you okay?" lottie asks, sitting next to him. which gathers everyone's attention. even louis is staring at him now.

he just nods and pushes his chair back so he can stand up and excuse himself to the restroom. "yeah, 'm sorry," he says, on the verge of tears.

he cries in the bathroom. he knows everyone can hear him from the other room but he can't help it. his own husband doesn't even bother to come check on him.

when he finally calms down and goes back to the dinner table, it's silent. everybody's still looking at him worriedly and he's thankful that they worry but he just wants them to leave him alone.

"are you sure you're alright, love?" jay asks, reaching over the table to grab his blood-stained plate and take it into the kitchen to wash it. she tries to give him a clean plate but he just waves her off, thanking her.

once everyone's seated again, he wipes his nose with the back of his hand and then takes in a deep breath. "i-i'm pregnant," he blurts.

louis whips his head up to look at him, eyes wide. harry looks right back with an apologetic look on his face, wishing he hadn't said that without telling him first.

jay gasps, holding her hand to her heart. she gets up again so she can scurry to the other side of the table and hug her son-in-law, kissing his cheek. "oh, harry, that's wonderful!" she exclaims, becoming the clearest voice among all of the others.

"when did you find out?" dan asks, grinning.

harry's lost count of the days already. he's been too busy worrying about what louis' reaction was going to be to keep track. "uh, tuesday, i think," he tells them, smiling sheepishly. there are so many people surrounding him, genuinely excited for him. it's funny because they seem more thrilled about it than he and his own husband do.

"you guys finally listened to us, huh?" louis' mother laughs, going to give her actual son a hug and a kiss as well.

louis, glancing between his mom and his husband, nods, a blank expression on his face. "yeah, guess so."

-

later that night, harry says goodnight and heads down to the basement where he and louis' bedroom is. he's exhausted. the entire night consisted of being heckled by his family to talk about the thing growing inside of him. all he wants to do now is sleep.

louis follows him to bed. they hold hands until they're finally downstairs and away from everyone else. harry won't lie and say there wasn't a pang in his heart when their fingers left each other.

they sit down on the bed and louis grabs his shoulder when he tries to get up. even just a shoulder grab sends chills down his spine. he turns to look at him with a frightened look on his face. "please don't expect me to tend to your every need," he murmurs so that nobody else can hear him.

harry thinks that if his mother heard that, she would slap him upside the head. she really wishes she would. what a pathetic thing to say out loud. "i don't..." he shakes his head.

louis is about to reply when he hears someone's footsteps coming down the stairs. he lays down and pulls harry flush against him so they're cuddling, carding his fingers through his hair.

it's jay, carrying ernest in her arms. she rolls her eyes behind his back and sets him down on the bed, allowing him to crawl in between the married couple. "ernie insisted on snuggling with his favorite boys," she sighs. she turns back toward them when she reaches the bottom of the stairs, smiling apologetically. "let me know if he gets too obnoxious," she says, and then disappears upstairs.

"i'm gonna be an uncle," louis' little brother laughs, in awe.

louis nods, swallowing thickly. harry hears it. "you're gonna be the best uncle ever," he smiles as convincingly as he can when harry's fingers keep combing through his hair and he can hear him breathing and he's so annoyed.

ernest looks to harry to see if he agrees, and he does. he yawns, curling up against harry's chest rather than his own brother's. "why does it take so long?" he asks, curious.

harry looks up and grins a little, trying to get some type of reaction out of his husband. louis doesn't budge until his brother turns to look at him and get an answer. "remember how mum carried you in her belly for nine months?" when he nods, he continues. he tries to find a way to describe it without getting too technical about things. "well, that's what we have to do for our baby. it's gonna take a while because we need to let him grow."

we? harry scoffs in his head. louis literally just said he doesn't want anything to do with the damn thing. the fact that he even thinks he has to go through anything that harry does is astonishing. "him?" he repeats, looking up at him.

louis looks away immediately, diverting his attention to covering up the young boy with the duvet. "i just have a hunch."

-

harry is five months pregnant when louis comes home looking as angry as ever.

he doesn't even bother to kick his shoes off when he gets in the house, just stomps into the kitchen where harry is making dinner and grabs the pot of macaroni and cheese from right under his face. he tosses all of it into the trash bin and doesn't feel a hint of sympathy when his husband turns toward him with tears in his eyes.

"what the fuck is your problem?" the curly-haired brunet asks, defensive. he's gotten a bit of a temper now. that's another thing on the extensive list of why louis hates pregnant harry.

louis shakes his head, brushing off his question. instead, he takes his phone out of his pocket and flips it around to show harry his messages. "stop texting my mother."

harry scoffs. "what do you want me to do, ignore her?" he asks, exasperatedly. he closes his eyes when a braxton hick catches him off guard -- he gets them a lot when he's stressed -- and puts a hand on his belly.

"no, i want you to stop talking to my fucking mum when you know i'm out with matthew," he grumbles, preoccupied with texting someone on his phone. he looks up at harry afterward and chucks his phone onto the kitchen counter, eyes diverting to the baby bump in between his hips. "because she kept messaging me shit about you and our baby and he saw it and left me because he doesn't feel comfortable dating me when i have a pregnant husband at home."

the other boy just laughs a little under his breath, getting 'pissy' as louis likes to call it. "yeah, thank god he has more decency than you do," he murmurs, opening the fridge to grab something else to make. obviously, mac and cheese is out of the picture. "i mean, sleeping with a married man was one thing but at least he knows coming in between a man and his unborn baby is wrong."

he looks back at louis and he's literally fuming. he's sure that if he wasn't pregnant, louis would hit him right now. he knows he's not in any immediate danger, other than the braxtons that continue to tighten in his stomach. "there's no reason for you to be jealous," the older man pipes up. harry doesn't need to see him to know there's a smug, teasing expression on his face. "i've seen how you look at me when i come out of the shower and i've heard the noises you make when you lock yourself in the bathroom for twenty minutes at a time. you keep on telling me that you don't care what i do and that you couldn't give less of a shit about me but sometimes you sit next to the window until i get home, and you stay awake until you hear me come into the room and then you pretend you're asleep. but go ahead and tell me again that you don't care."

"why do you care so much about what i think of you?" harry picks his head up from where he was staring at the kitchen tiles to glare at his quote-on-quote lover. "if you hate me so much, why are you trying to dissect my feelings for you?"

louis sneers at him, looking him up and down and caviling at the mere sight of him. "i don't like this attitude you're giving me."

"i don't give a shit about what you like," harry counters with a sniffle, brushing past him to grab a mixing bowl out of one of the cupboards.

he's positive louis can hear him crying. hell, he's only a couple feet away. "then why are you crying?" the man asks after a moment of silence.

the youngest one in the room slams the bowl on the counter and steps closer to louis as he yells. "because i'm tired and i'm pregnant and my incompetent twat of a husband won't even let me hold his hand when i'm having contractions!" he's full-on sobbing and louis, surprisingly, actually looks a bit shocked.

nobody speaks. the only sound in the entire house is harry's heartwrenching weeps. louis can't even manage to utter some sly comeback. he just stands there and stares at the boy, wide-eyed.

it takes minutes for harry to calm down. the next time he speaks, he's still crying, but he's no longer shouting. "go ahead a-and tell your family that we aren't in love and that our baby was a mistake and that y-you've been cheating on me for five years. i don't care anymore," he hiccups, stifling his cries, and leaves the room. he won't tell louis that he hasn't eaten in hours and that he'd just completely ruined his appetite. it's not like he would listen anyway.

-

it's quiet in the house when harry wakes up, stomach growling. he's surprised to see that he's still in the bedroom. louis usually kicks him out and makes him sleep on the couch so that he can have the bed.

he gets out of bed and pass into the kitchen to get something to eat, not bothering to look in the living room to see if louis is even here. he's probably already found a new boyfriend to complain about harry to.

he opens up the fridge and furrows his eyebrows at what he finds. inside, there's a tupperware container full of mac and cheese, with a sticky note on the top that only reads harry - L.

of course, he takes it out and puts it in a bowl so he can heat it in the microwave. he tries to be as quiet as possible to avoid any more conflict with the man but the microwave is so loud. he curses it when he hears the sounds of joints cracking and louis' footsteps from the other room. "hey, are you still having braxtons?" he asks, entering the kitchen.

harry's forehead creases in confusion and he presses start on the microwave, refusing to turn toward him. "uh, a little, yeah. why?"

louis brushes his own hair out of his face and leans against the counter, holding his hand out for harry to take. he does, but not without a whole shit ton of hesitation.

the microwave beeps and harry takes it out, leaving it to cool off on the counter while he turns toward the older man. "why are you being nice to me?" he asks, defensive.

"i just feel like i should apologize."

he only nods, letting go of louis' hand so he can grab a spoon from the drawer and immediately dig in to the macaroni. "well?" he picks his head up after a few bites, watching him with an eyebrow quirked. "i'm waiting."

it takes a while for any words to come out. harry knows he's struggling to even say he's sorry for the sudden outburst earlier that night. the boy sighs and steps closer, acting like someone else could be listening in on their conversation even though they live alone and have for several years. "i know you're going through a lot right now, and i want you to know that i'm willing to tolerate you as long as it makes my folks happy," he finally exhales.

harry stares at him blankly, a bit offended. but alas, he knows he can't start another argument or he'll take his mac and cheese again. "i appreciate the sacrifice," he hums.

louis nods and watches him eat, ignoring his awkward glances. he eventually snaps out of it and scratches the back of his neck, nudging his head toward the living room. "uh... wanna go watch a movie?"

-

harry and louis have been getting closer.

it basically started that same day as the big argument. that night, they had watched a movie together, and louis had allowed harry to sit as close as he'd wanted. of course, harry had been very uncertain of the whole situation and had sat only a bit closer than he normally would.

things progress after that. the two of them begin sleeping in the same bed, but still faced opposite ways. sometimes louis will reach over and half-consciously hold the other boy's hand for little to no reason. harry doesn't budge. he basks in the attention.

everything's gotten better. louis has started barging into the bathroom to wee while harry's in the shower, acting like they'd never even hated each other. months ago, he would have thrown up if he'd even stepped foot in there.

they're at louis' house again. normally they would try to find every way to get out of going because they don't want to be all 'lovey-dovey' in front of the family. but louis begged harry to go. of course, harry couldn't resist. he still freaks out every time he has a bowl of food in his hand and that guy is around.

harry gets a phone call when they're eating dinner and waddles outside with louis' jacket on to answer it. everyone halts their eating while they wait for him to return.

the front door creaks open after a couple of minutes. louis is the first one to notice it. "hey, louis?" the boy calls out. his voice is hoarse like he's been crying. "could you come out here?"

the older boy excuses himself from the table and grabs harry's actual jacket before leaving the house as well. harry's crying. he doesn't know why he's calling louis out here to comfort him.

"hey, uh, i think i'm gonna go home," he sniffles, looking down at the pavement rather than his husband across from him. "i-i got in a fight with my mum, i don't want to ruin your night."

louis shakes his head, even though harry doesn't see it. the curly-haired boy turns around and tries walking down the porch stairs, but louis grabs his bicep and pulls him back, forbidding him from leaving. "are you crazy? what are you gonna do, walk home?" he asks, moving to hold harry's shoulders instead.

harry nods and wiggles out of the man's grip before walking away, hands in his pockets. he's staring down at the snow that squishes underneath his feet, bottom lip trembling. he only gets about ten feet away before he hears heavy footsteps trailing behind him and his hand suddenly becomes engulfed in someone else's.

it's louis. obviously. he continues to walk beside him, holding his hand, and harry stops in his tracks to turn to him, head cocked.

"what're you doing?" he asks.

"walking home with you," he shrugs.

"that's crazy. it's two hours away-"

"mhmm," the older man nods. "that's right, me and my seven-month pregnant husband are gonna walk home in the snow. no stopping at any stores. no sleeping. nothin'."

harry's pouting. "but what if i have to pee?" he asks.

louis' grinning. "nope," he shakes his head. for some reason, harry doesn't detect any sarcasm.

they walk for five more minutes in complete silence. harry doesn't realize it, but louis walks them around the same block twice. "i have to pee already," the curly-haired boy sighs.

the other boy looks over at his unoccupied hand and notices that it's slipped underneath his jacket, pressed against his belly. maybe he shouldn't be making him walk this much. but, hey, he insisted.

only two minutes later, harry spots the tomlinson residence and begins walking toward the driveway, dragging louis behind him.

before they go in, louis stops him and reaches up to wipe the tears off of his rosy cheeks, warming him up in the process. harry can see his breath in the air. he feels bad making him come out here with him when it's so cold.

when they open the door and walk in together, the family is eating again. the married couple doesn't mind. harry knows louis would probably scarf down his entire plate without hesitation if someone left the room.

"hey, sorry guys, harry got nauseous," the oldest of the two explains when they sit down. harry smiles sheepishly as louis ruffles his hair and grabs his half-empty plate to go warm it up in the microwave.

-

besides louis and harry, lottie is the last one to head to bed. she leaves the boys in the living room after bidding them goodnight, disappearing into one of the guest bedrooms down the hall.

louis doesn't budge on the pull-out couch when he realizes there's nobody around. he continues to have his arm wrapped around the curly-haired boy, scratching at his scalp.

harry is asleep with his head pillowed on louis' shoulder when he suddenly jolts awake. he wipes his drool with the back of his hand and looks up at louis with his eyebrows furrowed. "what time's it?" he asks.

"like, midnight," the man shrugs.

"fuck, i was gonna call my mom earlier," he groans and reaches over half-consciously to grab his cell phone off the coffee table.

louis takes it from him before he can make any calls, holding him close again. "harry, don't worry about it," he murmurs, tucking his hair behind his ear gently. "do it when we get home."

there's a bit of hesitation but harry eventually allows himself to settle back down. louis sees the pout on his lips and he knows it. "lou?" the boy asks. when he hears louis hum, he wrinkles his forehead, trying to put his words together. "you know nobody's around, right?" his voice is small as he falls in and out of consciousness.

"yeah," he nods.

"so why are you still holding onto me?"

it takes a bit for louis to respond. "felt like it."

harry hums out loud. "you make no sense to me," he admits.

louis chuckles, linking their fingers together on top of the other boy's stomach. "aren't you glad you didn't try walking home earlier?" he changes the subject.

the younger boy nods immediately, burying his face in louis' chest. "'m so warm now," he giggles. his breath hitches a little when louis presses a suave kiss to the top of his head and snuggles closer.

what is going on? why is louis acting like he hasn't hated him for almost six years? harry's desperate to find an answer.

-

harry and louis somehow get even closer.

the curly-haired boy, now only a few weeks away from his due date, is very very thankful for all of the things his husband has been doing around the house. he's noticed him cleaning up so he doesn't end up tripping over the clutter on the floor and he's been cooking harry's favorite, mac and cheese, without having to be asked.

louis comes home from work and harry takes note of the bouquet of pretty pink, white, and red flowers in his hand. he tries to ignore it and pretend like those are for someone else, but it's quite obvious who he got them for.

"hey, feeling any better?" the man asks, locking the door behind him.

harry nods, remembering how sick he'd felt in the morning. it isn't until he gets up from the couch and walks over to help him with his things that he smells the flowers and immediately feels queasy. he wants to vomit as soon as the stench hits his nostrils. "could you grab me the bin?" he asks, but it's more of a demand.

louis immediately scurries to grab the wastepaper bin and hands it off to him, watching him with a worried look on his face. the other boy can feel his hand gently rubbing his back while he throws up everything he'd managed to eat throughout the day.

he starts crying as soon as he's able to catch his breath, leaning against the kitchen counter shakily. he hears louis sigh from behind him, setting the flowers down on the other side of the room. he throws up one more time before the nausea finally starts to go away.

the older man takes the bin after harry pushes it away and sets it down wherever he possibly can. for some reason, he decides to focus on harry. "was it the flowers?" he asks. his voice is low.

the boy nods, wiping his own tears with the pads of his thumbs. he's hyperventilating a bit and can't find it in himself to say a word.

"i'm sorry, haz, if i knew they'd make you sick, i wouldn't have bought-"

"you didn't know," he interrupts, shaking his head. it's impossible to halt the hiccups that leave his pouty lips. he retreats to the living room so he can curl up on the couch and melt away into the cushion.

surprisingly, louis follows him. he sits down next to him and does nothing but stare at him, making sure he's alright.

harry peers over at him with an uneasy expression. "you know, if you want a picture, you could just ask for one," he retorts, sniffling. he hates it when people look at him like that -- halfway between sympathy and second-hand embarrassment.

louis' face softens. he scoots over so he can wipe the tears off of the boy's face, being as gentle as possible. "i'm just looking after you," he explains.

normally, louis would rather die than have to take care of harry. recently, that's all he seems to do. the young boy pillows his heavy head against louis' shoulder and continues sniveling. "thank you for the romantic gesture," he murmurs, but can't find it in himself to laugh about it.

"it's not very romantic if i made you sick," the man dismisses him.

they fall into a comfortable silence. harry almost falls asleep on his shoulder before he remembers something that he wanted to say. "i bought you a bottle of champagne yesterday. the checkout lady looked at me weird," he tells him.

he giggles as louis immediately disappears into the kitchen to grab it.

when he comes back, he sits down and curls his feet up under his legs, relaxing. "thank you, hazza," he sighs out of complete and utter happiness.

harry just hums with a nod, diverting his attention to the telly. he's gotten good at pretending louis isn't even there. the roles have really reversed recently.

louis sets the champagne bottle down on the coffee table and sits still for probably five minutes before he wants harry's attention. "can i ask you something?" he speaks up.

"uh... sure," the curly-haired boy nods. he turns to face him, getting a bit nervous.

it's quiet. harry's almost sure louis can hear how fast his heart is beating. "when did you know you were in love with me?" he asks.

his breath catches. "who says i'm in love with you?"

"well, when you say it in front of my family, i can tell you mean it," louis shrugs.

he doesn't respond. louis' afraid he might have said something wrong.

harry suddenly stands up and begins to leave the room, not bothering to make eye contact with the other man. louis doesn't follow. harry's glad.

-

"haz? haaaaaaarry?"

the voice that rings in his ears is gentle. in fact, he'd probably say it's more gentle than ever.

he squints his eyes open to look over at the man who's laying in bed next to him. the sunlight is streaming through the curtains behind him and louis' face is all golden and he begins to smile. "what time is it?" he asks, closing his eyes again.

louis reaches over and brushes the curls out of his face. "uh, time for me to take you to the hospital, maybe?" he questions. he sees harry's face contort to one of confusion and he sighs. "you've been groaning in your sleep for the last twenty minutes..."

"yeah, my tummy hurts," he nods, a pout on his lips. "it has for, like, three hours."

"d'you know how far apart they are?" louis asks.

harry is quiet for a bit while he thinks. "um... fifteen minutes?" he guesses.

"so, when are we supposed to leave for the hospital?" he asks yet another question. he's so clueless.

"when they're five to seven minutes, i think," harry tells him.

they don't realize it but their fingers are now intertwined. harry just wants to go back to sleep and try to relieve some of his pain.

he finds himself speaking again. "remember what you asked me, a couple of weeks ago?" he asks. he hears louis hum in approval and he draws his brows. "to answer your question, it was the first time we went to your parents' house," he murmurs. he's not looking at him. he doesn't want to. if he sees that disgusted look on his face, he's gonna have to run away again like he tried to do over the winter.

"why?"

why would he have a reason? he creases his forehead. "i guess i saw the way you treated your family and admired how you were when you were with them," he shrugs. of course, he means all of his other family members that aren't harry.

he hears louis hum again. he's sick of hearing that already. "do you wanna know how i found out?" the older man asks.

harry furrows his brows and opens his eyes to look at him, deadpanned. "never? i already knew that," he scoffs.

he shakes his head, laughing. "no, i mean, i really did."

of course, harry doesn't believe him. why would he? the man has been ignoring him since the day they got married. "yeah, okay. when did this happen?" he asks with a roll of his eyes.

"remember when we were at my parents', and you were trying to walk home in the middle of a snowstorm?" harry nods. "then."

the curly-haired boy shakes his head to himself, laughing. "why...?"

"i don't know. i just knew," louis shrugs, smiling.

nobody speaks. harry squeezes his eyes shut and grips onto louis' wrist, hissing through his teeth. louis' smile falters and he just scoots closer and wraps an arm around the boy's shoulders, pressing his palm against his baby bump. he's never done that before. "i feel like you're just trying to make me feel better," harry says when his contraction passes. there are tears in his eyes. he's not sure if it's from his nerves or the pain.

"what will it take for you to believe me, haz?" he asks, looking over at him.

their faces are so close their noses bump against each other when harry shrugs, swallowing thickly. louis caresses his cheek with his unoccupied hand and leans forward to kiss him on the lips, fingers curling around the whisps of unruly curls at the back of harry's head.

harry kisses back immediately. he closes his eyes and as soon as they pull away, he starts to cry. he turns his head the other way to avoid the other boy but he exhales shakily and louis knows. "why are you crying?" he asks softly.

the curly-haired boy stays silent until he physically cannot stand having louis stare at him any longer. "why did it take you so long to figure that out?" he asks, glancing over at him with watery eyes and flushed cheeks.

louis watches his bottom lip tremble and he has to look elsewhere. he sighs and shakes his head at himself. "i don't know," he admits. "i was stupid and i'm so sorry."

"um, are you still with that guy?" harry asks.

"no, that dude sucked," he replies, laughing a little when he sees his lip quiver into a tiny smile. he reaches over to rest his hand on his husband's stomach, closing his eyes. "i took this for granted. i'm really sorry i treated you like shit."

the younger boy doesn't know if he's supposed to forgive him or not. he thinks he needs a couple more days, or even months, to process it.

the two end up looking each other in the eye again. louis now holds his face in both hands and he leans in and kisses him again and again and harry just might be in heaven. it gets even better when they separate and their faces are still only a few centimeters away and louis' gaze switches repeatedly from his eyes to his lips and back up again. "i love you, okay?" he admits.

harry doesn't say it back. he doesn't think he's in the right mindset to say it just yet. he still smiles until his dimples show in his cheeks.

-

louis holds harry's hand at the hospital. well, i guess you could say harry grabs his hand in the middle of a contraction and digs his nails into his palm so hard it bleeds, but still.

harry and louis welcome a baby boy the next morning. louis' prediction came true and harry hands him a dollar bill to congratulate him and tells him to go buy himself something nice with a cheeky wink.

louis doesn't buy anything for himself. he runs down to the coffee shop and buys harry a coffee.

-

it only takes another year for harry and louis to get as intimate as possible.

louis gets home one night and it's pretty late. he knows harry is half-asleep in their bedroom, waiting for him to come home. he goes in the nursery to check up on their son, jaxson, first. he creeps out of there after finding him sound asleep, and slips quietly into their bedroom.

harry stirs in his sleep when he feels the bed dip next to him. he doesn't bother to open his eyes and only scoots over to cuddle up to him.

"hey, i got you something," the older man whispers, interrupting the silence.

the curly-haired boy eventually squints his eyes open to see what louis got him. he gasps out loud when his husband holds up a little box with a wedding band inside.

"i know we're already married, but i wanted to get you this to say that i really do want to be married to you," he murmurs, sheepish.

harry smiles, holding up his hand so louis can slip the ring on his finger. it falls just above their engagement rings from when they were first married. "thanks, lou," he whispers, giggling. 

louis presses a suave kiss just underneath his jaw and then pulls him close, sighing into the top of his head. "i love you, haz," he murmurs.

"i love you, too."

-

two and a half years later, louis is walking into the house with jaxson, trailing shortly behind him. he's finally learned how to walk and has been using his little legs to run all over the place. at one point he had ran all the way down the street without his parents noticing and harry had a panic attack and cried in relief when he saw louis rushing back toward the house with their son in his arms.

harry sets three plates down at the kitchen table and stops louis before he can ruffle his hair, narrowing his eyes at him. "wash your hands," he orders.

the older man nods. "yes, sir," he murmurs, and leads him and his mini-me to the sink. harry can hear him talking in that baby-talk voice he always uses with the child. "papa is so stubborn," he complains.

the curly-haired boy grins to himself and continues setting the table, listening to his boys laughing from behind him.

louis comes back and picks up jaxson so he can set him down at the table and help him get a plate for dinner. he's just about to put some food on the plate when he hears harry curse and he turns to look at him and he's holding a bloody napkin up to his nose, staring at him. they have a staring contest for about twenty seconds before the curly-haired boy shrugs and he can see that he's smiling from his eyes. "um... surprise?" he squeaks.

the plate in louis' hand shatters to pieces on the hardwood floor. "are you serious?" he asks. harry nods hesitantly and watches louis almost go into cardiac arrest.

"are you okay?" the younger boy asks.

when harry finally halts his nosebleed, louis sprints over to hold his face in both hands and kisses him on the lips, holding him close. "you're glowing, haz, i'm so excited," he grins as he pulls back.

harry giggles as louis sweeps up all the pieces of broken plate on the floor and then kisses him one last time before grabbing his phone and scurrying toward the hallway. "where are you going?" he asks, with a brow quirked, but he's still smiling.

"i gotta call my mum!" louis exclaims.

the curly-hair boy laughs to himself, setting louis' food in the microwave. he knows he won't be back for a while. sometimes that guy gets on the phone with his mum and doesn't shut up. harry would even say that he's starting to gush about him more than usual.

if somebody would have told harry that he would be having a second child with the man who had originally hated him, he would have laughed. louis' stuck with him. he wouldn't have it any other way, though.


End file.
